HELSINKI, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Finnish nuclear power consortium
Fennovoima said it would build a reactor in Pyhajoki, northern
Finland -- the first announcement of a new site anywhere in the
world since the March disaster at the Fukushima plant in Japan.

The reactor project, estimated to cost around 4-6 billion
euros ($5-8 billion), comes as Finland tries to curb its
dependence on Russian energy and help its metals and forestry
businesses stay competitive.

Environmentalists oppose the project, citing the area's
vulnerable vegetation and wildlife, while proponents of nuclear
policies say the Finnish economy cannot afford to phase out
nuclear power, as Germany is doing.

Finland's long, cold winters require high energy
consumption, and its forest and steel sectors rely on cheap and
stable electricity.

The site is due to provide energy to Fennovoima's
shareholders including stainless steel maker Outokumpu
, retailer Kesko and the local subsidiaries
of Swedish metals firm Boliden .

Construction in Pyhajoki, on the Hanhikivi peninsula, is
expected to begin in 2015, and Fennovoima's chief executive said
the company will choose a supplier in 2012 or 2013. Areva
and Toshiba have been invited to bid on the
project.

"We will get offers from equipment makers in January. After
we have gone through those and chosen the deliverer, we can
apply for construction permit from the government," CEO Tapio
Saarenpaa told a news conference on Wednesday.

Fennovoima said it picked Pyhajoki over Simo, another
municipality that was considered a leading candidate site,
because of its lower seismic values and more solid bedrock.

SEVENTH IN FINLAND

Finland's parliament voted in July 2010 to back the building
of two new nuclear reactors by Fennovoima and utility
Teollisuuden Voima (TVO), raising Finland's total to seven.

The Fukushima disaster prompted Finland to launch a review
of nuclear safety, but there has been little questioning among
lawmakers over whether Fennovoima should proceed.

The country's supreme administrative court overruled appeals
over Fennovoima's nuclear project on Sept. 21, clearing the way
for the site selection.

German utility E.ON has a 34 percent stake in
Fennovoima through its Finnish subsidiary, and an official said
nuclear energy was a cost-efficient way to produce energy.

"The additional safety measure which may be requested by the
authorities after Fukushima will not significantly change the
economic competitiveness of nuclear energy," Ralf Gueldner, who
heads E.ON's nuclear fleet and is a member of Fennovoima's
board, told reporters in Helsinki.

He added Finland was a "rather attractive site" for a
nuclear reactor due to strong political support on the national
and local level, and from the general public.

But not everybody is enthusiastic. Around 10 people
demonstrated outside Wednesday's news conference in Helsinki,
carrying plaques saying "E.ON E.OFF - German nuclear power to
Finland? No thank you."

Environmentalists, who note the area's rare vegetation and
location along a migratory route for birds, have said they will
take the case to the European Union.

"The decision conflicts greatly with natural values in the
area and shows disregard for environment and also EU
legislation," local environmental activist group Pro Hanhikivi
said in a statement.